Top 10 Times Managers Fought Back Against Karens

A customer named Elizar Ravelo regularly frequented a McDonald’s in Miami Springs, Florida, for a meal. But in August 2023, he exploded in rage when he discovered he was charged more than usual and argued with staff. After manager Stephanie Restuccia admonished him for his insults and was handing him a cup of coffee at the drive-thru, Ravelo smacked the beverage from her hand, spilling the hot contents over her arm before he drove off. Sadly for Ravelo, it was captured on the fast food chain’s CCTV. He was charged with felony battery and was ordered to stay away from the restaurant and Restuccia. And all of this was apparently due to Ravelo being overcharged by a penny.

It’ll never stop being astonishing when people experiencing horrible treatment keep their composure. In 2021, at a Ross Dress For Less store in St. Louis, Missouri, a Karen, later identified as Lisa Zohner by internet sleuths, had gotten into an argument with the manager for an undisclosed reason and was being asked to leave the shop. Regardless, while the manager was calm and collected, Zohner was not. On top of uttering multiple insults and swearing at the worker, Zohner also threw in some slurs. Yet, the whole time, the manager remained calm and collected. After the video went viral, Zohner was shamed publicly for her terrible behavior.

Some people think they can behave poorly and get away with it. Not this time. In 2015, a Karen walked into a Chevron gas station in Salt Lake City, Utah, and was rude, causing the assistant manager to deny her authorization for the pump. After she was shown proof she wasn’t charged after swiping her card, the Karen slapped the employee before trying to make a hasty exit. Well, not on this manager’s watch! She grabbed the fleeing Karen, put her in a headlock, and took her to the ground. As well as dealing with things the hard way, the manager directed other employees to call the cops, who later arrived and escorted the slappy Karen from the station.

It’s bonkers that some people think they can utter slurs on camera and still don’t think there'll be any consequences. But that’s what happened with one Karen in 2022 at the seafood restaurant King Cajun Crawfish in Orlando, Florida. The woman claimed her shrimp was off, even though she reportedly ate three, and wanted a refund. When manager Kristen Nguyen denied the request, the Karen launched into an anti-Chinese rant. However, Nguyen, who has Vietnamese heritage and was born in the US, claimed the woman took a to-go container of her apparent “spoiled” meal. After the video went out, on top of the cops investigating, the Karen’s business was inundated with negative reviews. Unfortunately, an innocent, similar establishment was caught in the crossfire.

When a Karen doesn’t get what they want after ranting and arguing, they have one more trick up their sleeves… aggression. In 2021, Sweets Williams, a manager at a Pizza Hut restaurant, had to deal with the complaints of a Karen who wanted a refund. She claimed her pie was a thin crust and was missing sauce on the pizza. But that didn’t stop her from consuming a sizable portion. Getting nowhere, the woman knocked the box off the counter, spilling its contents on Williams. Before she could escape, Williams, who claimed she was also spat on, followed the Karen into the parking lot where more shouting continued and the manager stood up for herself and took on her aggressor.

Instead of focusing on her career as an actor and performing at the iconic Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Sophie Gatacre decided that being a menace to her neighbors was more important. She had taken umbrage with The Chipping Forecast restaurant near her in Notting Hill, England. Gatacre had repulsively maligned manager Hamza Ahmed several times, and eventually ended up slapping him. She then returned weeks later and took on the owner. Gatacre was arrested and eventually sentenced for her attacks. She was conditionally discharged for two years and fined, plus owed compensation to both victims. Yikes.

Employee benefits are fun. But they often come with conditions. Which is something that Octavia Anderson was displeased with in 2018. She walked into the Burger King restaurant she worked at in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and asked for a discount on her order. However, since Anderson wasn’t working that day, it was denied. When the manager arrived and confirmed there was no discount, Anderson went behind the counter and reportedly attacked the manager. As the pair were locked in battle, other employees fought to separate them and eventually succeeded. But Anderson continued rampaging by attempting to kick the worker and throwing items around before storming out. She was later arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

After the pandemic, as if it already wasn’t gross enough to begin with, everyone knows that spitting on people is a big no-no. Yet billionaire property developer Michael Patrick Carroll apparently decided this was appropriate in his actions in a restaurant in 2023. At the Japanese restaurant Hiyakawa in Miami, Florida, Carroll kept trying to interact with a woman who was on a date with another man. At one point, he reportedly tried to follow her into the bathroom. When the maître D Angel Weill blocked him, Carroll seemingly spat in his face as he left. The developer had reportedly already been banned from several other restaurants.. In the aftermath, Weill filed a lawsuit against Carroll for his antics.

In 2021, Amanda Martinez stormed into the Sol de Jalisco restaurant in Temple, Texas to pick up a to-go order, but claimed the soup was so hot that it melted the plastic lid. After confronting manager Jannelle Broland and not getting what she wanted, she continued to argue with her. As Broland threatened Martinez with calling the cops due to her behavior, the customer threw the spicy soup in the manager's face before running away. Unfortunately for her, the police later located Martinez and charged her with assault, to which she pleaded no contest. On top of being banned from the restaurant, she was given a 15-month deferred adjudication, 6 days of jail work release, and fined $800.

Sometimes, it’s the simplest requests that cause a Karen to explode in rage. In 2016, at a Michaels store in Chicago, Illinois, Jennifer Boyle was asked, by an employee and the manager, Holli, whether she wanted to purchase a reusable bag. Boyle, who had another intense incident previously at a Peet’s Coffee shop, launched into a rant filled with racial themes. At one point, she claimed she was being discriminated against because of how she voted. However, during the filmed altercation, which was later released online, Holli remained calm throughout. After the video gained traction, a GoFundMe by witness Jessie Grady for the verbally abused manager was put together. The target of $400 was eventually smashed, as folks donated over thirty thousand dollars!

Have you ever witnessed a Karen get confronted? Let us know in the comments!